Thelma (2024)

Thelma is a feel-good caper comedy, set in Los Angeles and all dressed up in a pulsing action-movie soundtrack. It’s about the title character, a 93-year-old woman played by June Squibb, who was 94 at the time of shooting. Thelma is fond of her grandson Danny (Fred Hechinger, looking like Kurt Cobain or Scott Evil). He’s a 20something slacker with seemingly all the time in the world to visit and help Thelma with her computer. Later we find out Thelma is actually pretty handy with her electronics. Early in the picture Thelma is victim of a phone scam. Someone purporting to be Danny calls and says he was in an auto accident, almost killed a pregnant woman, and now he’s in jail. She follows the directions to post his bail, which involves mailing $10,000 in cash to an anonymous post office box. Thelma is not stupid but her panic blinds her to all the clues she’s being duped. The money is in the mail before she figures it out. Then she gets mad. Then she gets even. Classic stuff. Parker Posey plays Gail, Thelma’s daughter, Danny’s mother, and a psychotherapist. Clark Gregg is Gail’s husband Alan. Now they are all even more worried that Thelma is slipping mental-wise. But she is already on the case, stealing a friend’s scooter and taking off to monitor the post office box. Her friend, Ben (Richard Roundtree), takes off to help her and to get his scooter back. Her family frantically drives around town trying to find her. Thelma and June Squibb are charming enough, but the movie somewhat painfully wants it both ways on the elderly as figures of both pathos and comic relief. Director and screenwriter Josh Margolin makes this work (to the extent it does) by making it a farce, although he is not above abject pulling at the heartstrings in places. It is based on his own 104-year-old grandmother, whose apartment stands in for Thelma’s place. Thelma is basically a data point in the argument that you can make a suspense movie out of anything. Even an idle look can absurdly ratchet tensions. There is both gunplay and explosions along with gags about old people. A lot of stars in this one also helps put it over: Squibb in the first starring role of her life, Roundtree, Posey, Gregg, Hechinger, and Malcolm McDowell too. An amiable crew. You probably won’t believe a second of it, but you might have a nice time.